I do not know where we go when we die; And I do not know what the soul is Or what death is or when or why. What I know is that The song once sung cannot be unsung, And the life once lived cannot be unlived, And the love once loved cannot be unloved.
Closing
| By
Kenneth W. Collier
|
April 27, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
Tagged as: Agnosticism, Animal Memorial, Death, Direct Experience, Faith, Humanism, Memorial Services, Purpose
When my 85-year-old parents moved into their retirement home five years ago, my Dad found a comfortable role schlepping mats, blocks, and straps into the room where the Sunday yoga class was held. He was the only male, but it didn’t take him long to be an active member of the class instead of...
Reflection
| By
Mary Howard
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April 25, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
This hymn (sheet music is available) was written as a Celtic-style harvest song. Come as the summer turns t'ward autumn; Come as the long-night stars climb high'r. Come as time's unceasing turning Wheels us 'round 'round the harvest fire. Chorus: So we go From daylight toward the night. So we go,...
Music
| By
Patrick DeSimio
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April 25, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
We have come to share the loss we have felt in (Name) passing and some examples of the joy we carry from her/his/their* life. This we have done. But before we extinguish this chalice, let us acknowledge that we will not – that we cannot – extinguish the love she/he/they showed us; or the memory...
Chalice Extinguishing
| By
Greg Ward
|
April 25, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
Tagged as: Community, Interdependence, Love, Memorial Services
If we are lucky, we will all get a chance during our life to know someone who becomes for us an exemplar of living. And if we are really lucky, we will recognize how they ended up passing on some of their goodness to us. If we are lucky. But one thing is certain. No one – not one of us –...
Chalice Lighting
| By
Greg Ward
|
April 25, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
Tagged as: Death, Grief, Living Our Faith, Memorial Services, Unitarian Universalism
Our grief is a holy thing. It is that proof that another life touched ours in a profound way. It is the mark of love, the mark of connection, and the mark of a life well lived. We will mourn, we will cry, we will miss (Name)....
Closing
| By
Tracie Barrett
|
April 25, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
Tagged as: Death, Grief, Memorial Services, Relationships, Sacred
We kindle this flame with love for mothers and foremothers past, present, and future; We kindle this flame in celebration of community and its generations. We kindle this flame with respect and support for the greater circle of life of which we are all part.
Chalice Lighting
| By
Selena Fox
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April 24, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
The 7 Jobs Capitalism Asks of All of Us: 1. Measure Self Worth by Work: Don’t believe in the inherent goodness of people. Instead decide that everyone’s worth is only as much as they achieve. 2. Accept that Oppression is the Norm: This starts with adultism the moment we are born and conditions...
Reading
| By
Talia Cooper
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April 20, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
Tagged as: Activism, Arts & Music, Character, Direct Experience, Healing, Integrity, Relationships, Secular, Self-Respect
For a long time now, I haven’t believed in a god with a will, intentionality, or consciousness. I don’t put all my eggs in the basket of a god who will save and transform me. Rather, I look to humans, to my relationships with people. Transcendence with life, with the holy, comes through my human...
Reading
| By
Kaaren Solveig Anderson
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April 20, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
Those of us who call ourselves religious Humanists have a strong reverence for life. Many of us experience a deep sense of awe before the mystery of life and death, those powers greater than ourselves. We share a respect for science and reason, and we are willing to live with ambiguity to live...
Reading
| By
Carol Hepokoski
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April 20, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
Reason is an important tool, sure — an essential arbiter of truth claims about the world. But religion is grounded someplace deeper, where we experience the joy of living and are connected intimately with all that is....
Reading
| By
Mark Ward
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April 20, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
Humanism… is primarily about who we are connected to, what we think about each other, and how we work for justice in the world. No matter what else they believe, Humanists insist on the inherent worth of every person....
Reading
| By
Amanda Poppei
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April 20, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
For all the talk about reason and science, Humanism is really about a passionate love affair. It is a love affair with life, not a mythical hereafter. Humanism is a love affair with a progressive vision of civilization in which each of us can add to our growing library of wisdom, our evolving...
Reading
| By
Michael Werner
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April 20, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
Late in his life, the philosopher Richard Rorty — a well-known atheist — was asked by an interviewer if he could define holy. Perhaps the interlocutor thought the aging and dying Rorty would be stumped by the question or would fall into some traditional language of reverence. But Rorty was not...
Reading
| By
David Breeden
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April 20, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
We humans have both a natural desire and a spiritual need to feel connected and to grow roots, even if those roots aren't necessarily tied to a geographic place.
Reflection
| By
Marisol Caballero
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April 19, 2017
| From
Braver/Wiser
Spirit of Hope, settle into our bones on this Easter morning. Remind us once again that the dawn light is never a gamble; If there ever was a sure bet, it is the sunrise. Even stones crumble even grief changes and shifts and death is a mystery that is certain but not solid; But hope is like the...
Prayer
| By
Julia Hamilton
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April 14, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
We don't live into our redemption very much, or get to win the fight over death. Jesus’ resurrection is a symbol and a promise that we are redeemed and that death’s dominion is not the final word. On Easter the Deep Magic breaks through. We proclaim and sing that love’s redeeming work is done...
Quote
| By
Sarah C Stewart
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April 14, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
Our words for the chalice lighting were written from the perspective of Jessica Star Rockers. Perhaps her specific memories will elicit your own. She writes, "Every Sunday morning growing up my father would take us to mass at St. Peter’s Catholic church....
Chalice Lighting
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April 13, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
We recognize and honor today every dad who stood as their child shouted at them in anger or frustration. Every dad who tried to understand their child’s clothing choices, new hairdo, or new tattoo. Every dad who suddenly realized their child might be right and was willing to listen, and every dad...
Meditation
| By
Amy Petrie Shaw
|
April 13, 2017
| From
WorshipWeb
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